In the spring of 1867, Congress enacted the first of a series of radical Reconstruction acts and placed the South under military rule. The Commonwealth of Virginia became Military District Number One, commanded by Gen. John Schofield from 13 March 1867 until 2 June 1868. Elections conducted under military supervision in 1867 gave Virginia a conservative Republican government headed by Henry W. Wells. Gov. Wells' administration groped toward an end to military rule, the restoration of Virginia's rights as a state, and the reinstatement of civil rights for the state's majority of voting-age men. In the autumn of 1867, complying with federal Reconstruction legislation, Gen. Schofield called for the election of delegates to a constitutional convention that met in Richmond from 3 December 1867 to 16 April 1868.

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entry no. 136

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Auditor of Public Accounts inventory

1Instances of the Work List of members, officers, and employees of the State Constitutional Convention of Virginia, 1867-1868